Improved padlock



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

THOMAS SLAIGHT, OF NEWARK NEV JERSEY.

IMPROVED PADLOCK.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 33,715, dated November 12, 1861.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS SLAIGHT, of Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Padlock; andl do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figures l and 2 are internal views of my invention, Fig. 1 representing the lock in a locked state, and Fig. 2 representing it in an unlocked state; Fig. 3, a section of same, taken in the line x, Fig. l.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

The object of this invention is to obtain an unpickable padlock of simple construction; and it consists in the employment or use of a dog so combined with a guard-bar that the latter will keep the former firmly in proper' position, and the key in unlocking the lock made to act directly on the guard-bar or a pendant thereof, the two parts aforesaid forining a simple and efficient means for securing 'the shackle in the lock.

The invention also consists in the employment or use of certain parts so arranged as to retain a false key if inserted in the lock, so that said key cannot be withdrawn and by being retained in the lock not only serve as a means to prevent further efforts to pick the lock, but also serve as a means to lead to the detection of the party who made the effort to pick or illegitimately open the same.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, I will proceed to describe it. f A represents the case of the padlock, which may be of the usual for1n,and B is the shackle attached to the upper part of the case in theordinary way, the free or disengaged end of the shackle being in the form of a hook a, as shown clearly in Figs. 1 and 2. Vithn the case A there is fitted a dog C, said dog being on a pivot h and allowed to work freely there- The upper end of the dog C is notched,

so as to form a hook c, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

D represents a guard-bar which is fitted on a pivot cl and is provided with two prongs e f, one of which e is in contact with the lower part of the dog C.

The other prong f has a projection g upon it.

E represents a series of tumblers which are fitted on a common pin h. are slotted at their outer ends, as shown at t', said slots being made in the tumblers at varying points. Each tumbler is provided with a spring j, said springs having a tendency to keep the tu inblers forced downward. The under sides Of the tumblers E are rounded, as shown at k, to form projections, and when the lock is in an unlocked state and the projection g in the slotsz of the tumblers the parts k are not in line with each other, (see Fig. 3,) the projections being in line with each other when the lock is in a locked state, as shown in Fig. l. The bits of the proper key are so formed that when the key A is inserted in the lock and turned in the proper direction the bits will act upon the tumblers and throw them up, the springs j throwing the tumblers down on the bits and bringing the slots e' in line with each other, so that by still turning the key in the direction as at rst the prong@ will be acted upon and forced against the lower part of dog C, so that the hook c at the upper part of the dog will be thrown back free from the hook ct of the shackle, the projection g of the prong j' entering t-he slot-s 1l, and the upper end of the guard-bar D thrown up so as to permit the dog C being moved, as described. By this arrangement it will be seen that the key acts in a direct manner on the dog C, and a very simple and efficient means is obtained for securing the shackle in the lock and releasing it from the dog C, and it will also be seen that in casea false keyis inserted in the lock the latter cannot be withdrawn, as the projections 7c will catch in the spaces between the bits and secure the key in the lock, thereby preventing a second effort to illegitimately open the lock, (see Fig. 3, in which a false key is shown caught in the lock.)

The arrangement of the dog C and guardbar D as shown and described not only admits of a direct action of the key A on the dog C, but it also obviates the necessity of a spring being usedin connection with the parts aforesaid. This is a very important feature of the invention, for springs are liable to break, become weak by use, and are fre- These tumblers` quently rendered worthless by corrosion'.

This disadvantage attended a lock which was' patented by me January 2, 1855. The dog and guard-bar were employed and arranged to operate in a manner similar to the withindescribed invention; but a spring was necessarily employed. In the present invention the function ofthe spring, which is to throw the dog free from the shackle when the guard-bar D is moved to admit of it,is performed by the action of the key A on the prong e of the guard-bar, the prong in turn acting against the lower end of the dog C and throwing the upper end of said dog free from the hookaof the shackle, as previously explained.

In Fig. 4 the pronge of the guard-bar D and its relative position with the lower part of the dog C are clearly shown. In this figure the look is in a locked state.

In Fig. 5 the lock is in an unlocked state and the prong e shown in Contact with the lower part of the dog.

I do not claim, separately, the dog C, nor the slotted tumblers E, for said parts have been previously used; but

' I do claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. The employment or use of the dog C and guard-bar D when the latter is provided with a prong e, arranged in such relation with the lower part of the dog C that said dog may be actuated and thrown out or free from the shackle by the action of the key in unlocking the lock, substantially as described.

2. The employment or use of the key-catchers k, one or more, arranged in connection with 4the tumblers or formed on separate or special plates, to operate as and for the purpose herein specified.

THOS. SLAIGHT. 

